Duke's Old Fashioned Onion Burgers has become a pretty popular spot in La Mesa. Every time I've…read moredriven by, there's always a steady stream of people coming in and out, so I figured it was finally time to see what the hype was about. They also rotate fun milkshake specials, and when I visited they had an Apple Pie Milkshake that sounded really good. I just wasn't in the mood for something sweet that day.
I kept it simple and ordered the Single Onion Burger ($13.95) with mayo, ketchup, and lettuce, plus an order of the Original Fries ($5.75). The onion burger is made with fresh ground beef that's smashed with onions on the grill, and you can customize it with toppings like lettuce, tomato, pickles, jalapeños, cheese, mustard, and ketchup at no extra charge. Bacon is available for an additional charge.
The restaurant itself was really clean, and I appreciated the self-serve condiment station stocked with ketchup, spicy ketchup, ranch, plenty of hot sauces, and to-go containers.
The fries ended up being my favorite part of the meal. They're fresh cut and double fried, coming out piping hot with a crispy exterior and fluffy center. The portion was also super generous. They packed so many fries that they were spilling outside of the container into the bag. Paired with the ranch and spicy ketchup, they were honestly worth ordering on their own.
The burger was a little more disappointing. The patty was overcooked, which made it pretty dry. You could even tell by the color that it had spent a little too much time on the grill. Since I usually keep my burgers pretty simple, there wasn't much to balance out the dryness, so I found myself dipping almost every bite into extra ketchup and ranch just to add some moisture.
I can definitely see why Duke's is a neighborhood favorite, and I still like the concept behind their onion burgers. It just didn't completely satisfy the burger craving I walked in with. I'd come back for the fries without hesitation, and I'd be willing to give the burger another shot hoping I caught them on an off day.